West Virginia Schools Re-Entry Guidance for the Education of Students with Exceptionalities

On March 16, 2020, Governor Jim Justice of West Virginia issued an emergency closure of all public schools, changing the education system overnight from a brick and mortar face-to-face model to a remote learning model. Students with disabilities receiving special education and related services continue to be entitled to procedural safeguards and a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) as outlined in the "Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004" ("IDEA") and West Virginia Board of Education (WVBE) "Policy 2419: Regulations for the Education of Students with Exceptionalities." At this time, Congress has not granted authorization to the United States Department of Education (USED) to allow flexibilities or waivers to IDEA. Therefore, districts must continue to comply with all federal and state regulations and policies pertaining to students with exceptionalities. The following information presented in this report focuses on re-entry, recovery, and the re-establishment of procedures, processes and protocols to provide the services students with Individualized Education Programs (IEP) need to receive FAPE and meaningful benefit from their educational programs.